The Vicissitudes of the Commercial Economy of Acre from 1191 AD until 1291 AD

The present research seeks to provide a description of the rise and fall of the Acre’s trade between 1191 AD and 1291 AD. Throughout its tumultuous history, this city became a valuable base for the trade of the eastern Mediterranean civilizations. By the Muslim conquest, Acre was considered as the naval base under the Umayyads and Abbásids. With the rise of the Tulunids, the path to Acre’s progress was levelled, so that during the Fatimid period, Acre was able to regain its commercial role. During the Crusades, Acre appeared successful, and even turned the Tyre down, replaced it with four commercial networks. In this descriptive-analytical study, we seek to examine the commercial position of the port of Acre during the Crusades and to seek historical evidences of its flourishing and declining causes. The results show that the port of Acre was able to gain a significant foothold on the eastern shores of the Mediterranean at the beginning of this century, but with the Mongol invasion of the Levant and the change of trade routes, the Acre port declined.